The Social-Democratic Federation has been ill-served by
historians, dismissed as an irrelevance or an alien intrusion
into British politics. This thesis attempts to provide a
balanced and coherent account of the SDF's history, emphasisi:
regional as well as national developments to demonstrate that
until the early years of the twentieth century, the party
posed a genuine alternative to the supposed 'mainstream'
development of the ILP/Labour Party. The Federation was far
from the monolithic, centralised organisation, dominated by
Hyndman, thatis often depicted. A study of the branches in
Lancashire and Yorkshire reveals regional diversity and
demonstrates that they enjoyed considerable autonomy, but
although this autonomy allowed branches in areas like
Lancashire to adapt to their environment with considerable
success it also produced a party prone to internal divisions
over strategy. Consequently it failed to develop consistent
policies. This proved a fatal handicap at a crucial period
in the history of the British Socialist movement, during the
formative years of the Labour Party. The SDF was marginalised,
preoccupied with its own internal debates at a time
when it could have exercised considerable influence inside
Labour's ranks. It never satisfactorily resolved the debate
over which course to pursue, that of reform or revolution,
until the outbreak of the First World War brought the divisioi
within the party to a head, which ultimately caused its
dissolution. Nevertheless its eventual demise should not
obscure its achievements which, as is often the fate of
pioneers, remain largely unsung. It educated and agitated;
it played a leading role in the formation of both ILP branches
and Labour Representation Committees; it produced a generation
of working-class intellectuals and militants; it championed
the cause of the unemployed. Most important of all, the SDF
was responsible for re-introducing Socialism to the British
political agenda.